Beginner - getting ready to start - Page 2

danwigz · February 22, 2011

I grew tomatoes and peppers in my basement last year, and the peppers seemed fine at the lower temp. They would have done great if I hadn't gone on vacation or my house sitter had watered them... arg.

tam91 · February 22, 2011

Oh no. Oh bad. I'm sorry.

tam91 · February 23, 2011

Oooh I'm excited - my little pepper plants are just starting to peek out of the start mix - yay DirecTV box.

I guess I'd better get my shelves and lights set up - looks like I'll need them soon.

My seed starting trays from Johnny's should arrive tomorrow - so I'll get started on my tomatoes soon.

Gotta go figure out the start dates on the chard and basil...

fortyonenorth · February 23, 2011

Tam - In terms of when to start your tomatoes, I can offer you some thoughts based on my experience. We're in the same area, so the last frost dates are similar - I may even be a week earlier here by the lake.

Last year I started tomatoes in two batches - "early" ones on March 9 and all the others on March 16. I intended to transplant on May 9. As it turns out that was really a full week or two TOO early. The nights were still cold and the plants suffered, IMO. By the time, I transplanted en masse, the plants had really become huge and nearly unmanageable. I had potted them up to 1 gal containers and many were 2-3' tall and beginning to flop.

If you're only starting a handful of plants and have the time and wherewithal to give them the TLC they will need come April/early May (e.g. moving them inside or undercover on cold nights, staking if necessary, etc.) you can get a jump on the season by starting your seeds early. Otherwise, you may want to consider waiting until late March to start them.

I've started my peppers already, but I think I'll wait on the tomatoes this year and plan to transplant them around Memorial Day. I won't have the super-earlies that I did last year, but I'll save a bit of my sanity

One other comment based on my limited experience: the tomatoes that mature in our cool, sometimes wet springs simply don't taste all that good. Some varieties that are bred for cooler climates were o.k., but overall I was disappointed.

In my experience, basil germinates very quickly. I had nearly 100% germination within a week. In terms of planting out, Basil likes it hot. My first "batch" last year, planted out in May struggled all season; the basil I planted out at the beginning of June grew like gangbusters.

tam91 · February 23, 2011

Interesting that yours got so big. One greenhouse here started theirs in February and had a hot greenhouse (now those were too big!) and the other says they start theirs end of Feb, beginning of March - theirs were small to just right at planting time. Perhaps the temperature where they're growing has something to do with it?

I usually plant out around Mother's day. But I am in containers, and I can protect them if need be.

You're sure right on the basil - I didn't plant that out until the end of may. It did great last year - I plant lots of extras, as friends (and everyone else I seem to meet haha) wants some.

February 22, 2011	#16
danwigz Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 150	I grew tomatoes and peppers in my basement last year, and the peppers seemed fine at the lower temp. They would have done great if I hadn't gone on vacation or my house sitter had watered them... arg.

February 22, 2011	#17
tam91 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Crystal Lake IL Posts: 2,484	Oh no. Oh bad. I'm sorry.

February 23, 2011	#18
tam91 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Crystal Lake IL Posts: 2,484	Oooh I'm excited - my little pepper plants are just starting to peek out of the start mix - yay DirecTV box. I guess I'd better get my shelves and lights set up - looks like I'll need them soon. My seed starting trays from Johnny's should arrive tomorrow - so I'll get started on my tomatoes soon. Gotta go figure out the start dates on the chard and basil...

February 23, 2011	#19
fortyonenorth Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: NW Indiana Posts: 1,150	Tam - In terms of when to start your tomatoes, I can offer you some thoughts based on my experience. We're in the same area, so the last frost dates are similar - I may even be a week earlier here by the lake. Last year I started tomatoes in two batches - "early" ones on March 9 and all the others on March 16. I intended to transplant on May 9. As it turns out that was really a full week or two TOO early. The nights were still cold and the plants suffered, IMO. By the time, I transplanted en masse, the plants had really become huge and nearly unmanageable. I had potted them up to 1 gal containers and many were 2-3' tall and beginning to flop. If you're only starting a handful of plants and have the time and wherewithal to give them the TLC they will need come April/early May (e.g. moving them inside or undercover on cold nights, staking if necessary, etc.) you can get a jump on the season by starting your seeds early. Otherwise, you may want to consider waiting until late March to start them. I've started my peppers already, but I think I'll wait on the tomatoes this year and plan to transplant them around Memorial Day. I won't have the super-earlies that I did last year, but I'll save a bit of my sanity One other comment based on my limited experience: the tomatoes that mature in our cool, sometimes wet springs simply don't taste all that good. Some varieties that are bred for cooler climates were o.k., but overall I was disappointed. In my experience, basil germinates very quickly. I had nearly 100% germination within a week. In terms of planting out, Basil likes it hot. My first "batch" last year, planted out in May struggled all season; the basil I planted out at the beginning of June grew like gangbusters.